MANCHESTER United took all the accolades - both before and after the game - but, for Sam Allardyce, the deep wounds of a fourth heavy defeat in two-and-a-half months were self-inflicted.

Cristiano Ronaldo, the fans' choice as PFA player of the month and a hot tip to be player of the year, stole the show by teeing up the first three goals that effectively ended the Old Trafford derby as a contest inside just 25 minutes.

And Wayne Rooney - hat-trick hero of United's 4-0 win at the Reebok in October and the man England will look to for Euro inspiration in Israel at the weekend - helped himself to two more against Wanderers, much to the delight of the newly-crowned manager of the month Sir Alex Ferguson.

But Allardyce, who hoped to catch Fergie off his guard, blamed his own team's shortcomings rather than the brilliance of anyone in a red shirt for a resounding defeat that exposed a growing fear that is constraining his players as they enter the crucial final phase of the season.

Asked if the defeat - which followed crushing defeat at Liverpool, Middlesbrough and Spurs - might leave scars that would be difficult to heal, the manager joked at his own expense: "Scars? I'll need a plastic surgeon to sort that lot out."

But the way Wanderers conceded the first, second and fourth goals in the 4-1 defeat - all from their own set-plays, was no laughing matter. That, Allardyce said angrily, was just unacceptable.

"When they score their first goal from one of our goal-kicks, we're in trouble; when they score their second from our long throw into their box, we're in deep trouble; and when they score their fourth off one of our own free kicks, then there's no hope whatsoever.

"That's not us," he said.

Allardyce set his stall out to contain United - Ronaldo in particular - by preferring Henrik Pedersen to El-Hadji Diouf to assist Ricardo Gardner on the left and took the risk of playing the fit-again Kevin Davies in front of Nicky Hunt on the right, the prime purpose being to "double-up" on United's main attacking threat.

But the game plan was torn up with just over a quarter of the contest gone after Ji-sung Park scored his second and United's third.

"Playing against Manchester United at Old Trafford, the only chance you've got of getting anything is by keeping to the basics, by playing the percentages," Allardyce said.

"They are far too good to take them on at their own game. We're not good enough to do that, but we are good enough at scrapping, fighting, denying the opposition room to play and capitalising on what set-pieces or breakaways we might get. But we simply didn't do that at all, and because of that we've come away with another heavy defeat away from home."

Although describing Ronaldo as "a player Manchester United can't afford to lose" and advising the 22-year-old Portuguese international that he is better off staying at Old Trafford than going to Real Madrid - "a team in decline" - he rubbished suggestions that he was unstoppable.

"I thought he was stoppable, if we wanted to, but we didn't," he said.

"I saw Lille double-up on him in the Champions League and restrict him to very little of what we know Ronaldo can do.

"But the important thing was not Ronaldo. If we'd sorted out those three situations, we still might have lost the game, but we wouldn't have lost four goals.

"If Manchester United use their extra talent to beat us, I will accept that. But they did not have to do that.

"Basic defending went wrong. There is a fear in the players at the moment because they simply can't see situations developing, otherwise they wouldn't allow them to happen.

"The opposition scoring three goals from our dead-ball situations is just not us.

"We worked all week at getting back to what we know we can do but I really can't understand how we've conceded three goals by just not getting the basics right.

"The fourth goal summed us up. We took a free kick and, instead of putting it deep into the heart of Manchester United's defence, we miscued it, the ball pops out, Alan Smith helps it on and Wayne Rooney goes through and scores. That's just embarrassing from our point of view, particularly when we are so good in that area "We had as good a chance as we've had for a long time because of their injury problems and the quality of players they were missing.

"But the 11 who were out there were all highly talented players and, because of the confidence in the camp at Manchester United, whoever steps in does equally as good a job as the man he replaces.

"That's why they are going to go all the way."